music dec tapes? (paper)

[allison]

On 01/03/2019 09:03 AM, Bill Degnan via cctech wrote:
> I have tapes with labels
>
> 8-152a 8 Music Coding Program Symbolic #1
> 8-152   8 Music Coding Program Symbolic #2
> 8-152   Teddy Bear's Picnic Symbolic
> 8-152a Penny Lane Symbolic
> 8-152 Joy to the World Symbolic
> 8-152 Your Mother Should Know Symbolic
>
> 8-152a Penny Lane 0037-7720, 0170=7777
>              0171=7777, 0172=7750,
>              0173=6020 Binary
>
> 8-152  When I'm 64
>             0037=720, 0170=7776
>             0172-7750
>
> 8-162   MUSIC FOR THE PDP-8
>              Load Tunes: 440
>              Play Tunes: 400
>
> "Start 8 Music"  (hand-written, no printed label)
>
> On Tue, Jan 1, 2019 at 9:03 PM Kyle Owen via cctalk <cctalk at classiccmp.org>
> wrote:
>
>> On Tue, Jan 1, 2019, 15:18 Adrian Stoness via cctalk <
>> cctalk at classiccmp.org
>> wrote:
>>
>>> anyone seen these music tapes before i grabed  this trays for the oddnes
>> of
>>> the content of these tapes? also apears to have the software to play
>> them?
>>>
>>>
>> https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Lot-of-15-digital-decus-Paper-Tapes-w-Case/273628629483?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
>>>
>>>
>> https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Lot-of-8-digital-decus-Paper-Tapes-w-Case/273628539210?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
>>> would this be some weird synthy type thing?
>>> control points for the sound boaerd used for automation on some fancy
>> desk?
>>> or somthing els?
>>>
>> Vince has a listing for some version of DECUS 8-152 on his website (
>>
>> http://svn.so-much-stuff.com/svn/trunk/pdp8/src/decus/8-152/decus-8-152-lst.pdf
>> ).
>> I have reverse engineered it enough to have his version play a few songs.
>> However, it seems like there's a difference between the music tapes I have
>> and the listing he has.
>>
>> I don't know what hardware was required of this software, but I suspect it
>> to be a DAC responding on address 055. This seems to match with an AA01
>> option.
>>
>> Did you end up buying these tapes? I have digitized the music tapes I
>> bought from the seller and will post them soon. It would be excellent if
>> the buyer of this lot would do the same.
>>
>> Musically,
>>
>> Kyle
>>

Those were likely with a PDP12 or LAB-8 with DAC board.  The code
actually is a roughly
digital version of tones in 10 or 12 bit form by writing sequential
words (waveforms) to
the DAC.  Before that it was done setting link and clearing link bit
with a timing routine.

There was a version of that also for MINC-11 and I've see variant back
when that used multiple
DAC cards for stereo or multiple voices.

It was also a thing for the S100 8080/z80 set (using a DAC) and many
other systems
(Kim-1, Apple, Cosmac, Commodore....).

Of course everyone here forgets the First Philadelphia Computer Music
Festival on vinyl from '78
with samples of computer played music.  I run my copy on occasion just
to remember being there.

Allison